Teacher asks if new teachers are really saving district money

Chester Elementary School opportunity teacher Cathy Hunter asked the school board if it was cost-effective to hire new teachers.

Hunter addressed the board during public comment period at the Sept. 5 board meeting of the Plumas County Office of Education in Chester.

She said that the district was spending energy on retiring experienced teachers, who cost the district more money than new ones.

Throwing out guesstimates of dollar amounts, Hunter said that if a new teacher is hired at the bottom of the wage scale, say $35,000, and the district spends about $27,000 on BTSA (Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment) there wasn’t much of a savings.

She also wanted to know what the district is doing to attract and support new teachers.

Superintendent’s Award

Superintendent Micheline Miglis conducted the inaugural Superintendent’s Award ceremony honoring two Chester students for meritorious achievements. See the accompanying article for the complete story.

Oestreich said the number of bidders compared to last year was slightly lower. She noted that the auction was held the same weekend as the county fair, and that several bidders said they went to the auction because they were in town for the fair.

Food Service Program Manager Jessica Linford provided an update to the board regarding the charge procedure for student breakfasts and lunches.

District staff is looking into the policy’s language regarding consequences of non-payment of meal charges. The current policy states that report cards and transcripts will be held and students may not participate in graduation if charge accounts are not cleared.

Sixth-grade outdoor ed

The board approved field trips for the district’s sixth-graders to attend the UC Berkeley Forestry Camp in Meadow Valley.

Chester sixth-graders will kick off the popular outdoor education program with their trip Sept. 24 – 27. The Indian Valley Elementary trip is Oct. 1 – 4, C. Roy Carmichael students will attend Oct. 8 – 13 and Pioneer-Quincy students will attend Oct. 15 – 18.

Closed session action

The board took action during a closed session regarding a student expulsion case. After about 90 minutes in closed session, the board voted unanimously, 4-0 (board president Chris Russell was absent), to accept Quincy High School Principal Sue Segura’s alternative recommendation to a student expulsion.

The next regular board meeting is scheduled for Oct. 3 at Portola High School’s library.